It is extremely important to take preventive measures, ensure good hygiene is in place, and undertake important steps towards changing behavior, Sheldon Yett, UNICEF representative in Liberia, told RT.

RT:Why is Ebola getting this level of
concern when other infections like pneumonia or flu are claiming
far more lives? Is the situation really so serious?

Sheldon Yett: Absolutely, the situation remains
very serious on the ground here. People continue to die every day
and this is something that must be stopped. The outbreak
continues to spread. So yes, it is serious. Of course the impact
of the disease goes far beyond the number of people who are
directly contracting the disease, but of course has a tremendous
impact on the economy, has impact on communities. It has impact
on the ability of people to find food, to sell food. It has an
impact on the ability of kids to go to school. So the impact of
this disease is huge, massive, and continuous.

Dr. Nuhu Maksha, INICEF Immunization Specialist: “UNICEF has
been working together with government departments to ensure
that children are separated from their mothers when they are
sick and they are attended to in terms of adequate nutrition.”

RT:Why is Ebola more dangerous than
other diseases like malaria or flu, for example?

SY: I think one of the most important things to
keep in mind is there are very easy treatments for flu and many
of these other diseases. Today, we don’t have a vaccine that we
know works for Ebola. It is extremely important that we take
preventive measures and that we ensure good hygiene in place, and
that we ensure that measures that are important for changing
behavior are undertaken here. We need to ensure that this
outbreak is stopped and the spread of this disease is stopped as
soon as possible.

RT:What are the major pharmaceutical
companies doing in terms of finding a cure for Ebola?

SY: Of course, there are a number of
pharmaceutical companies that are looking at this. There is some
early indication that some vaccines may work but we don’t know
yet. It is far too early to know. But there is a tremendous
amount of interest in this disease and we hope that companies
will have a vaccine at some point. But right now the solution is
in good public health, in strengthening public health measures
and insuring that health systems are functioning as soon as
possible.

“There are many agencies that are working on coming up with a
vaccine but that is the challenge to the global community
especially to the medical community,” Dr. Nuhu Maksha told RT.

RT:The world has already seen a number of
Ebola outbreaks, but this time it seems to be spreading more
quickly. Why it is so?

SY: I think one of the reasons is that it is in
urban areas. This is the first outbreak that has really affected
large urban areas. That makes it far more difficult to contain.
And that has led to the spread of disease beyond cities that
initially have been infected and other cities. That makes it far
more dangerous.

RT:Why do you think Europe and the US are
so worried about Ebola considering they’re far better-equipped
medically than African nations?

SY: It isn’t just Europe and the US, Russia is
also very, very worried about it, China is worried about it.
There isn’t a corner of the globe that is not worried about
Ebola. Nobody wants the disease to spread across their borders
because they have seen the devastation and destruction that it
leaves. That is why it is so important to focus world energy and
to focus the resources here in the epicenter of this disease and
addressing it here.

RT:What states are at risk now? Where can
it go?

SY: Obviously countries with strong public
health systems and good health infrastructure are far less at
risk than countries with poor infrastructure. Unfortunately,
Liberia is one of the countries that has a very poor health
infrastructure. The health system has not received resources that
it requires, and until the health system gets additional
resources, unfortunately, populations will be at risk.

“The [Ebola outbreak] took the West African region by surprise
because it was here in Africa, but in a different part of
Africa, and it came to us, to West Africa, and it was a new
virus for us,” Dr. Nuhu Maksha said.

RT:Can Ebola be contained?

SY: The world has a good chance to contain it,
but it’s important that the world concentrates its efforts on
addressing the outbreak here, in West Africa. The threat and
danger to populations here is much greater than it is to
populations in the US or Europe or elsewhere in the world because
people here are much closer to the epicenter of the disease. And
as I mentioned, health infrastructure is much poorer here than it
is in Western Europe or the US.

The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.